Language: limited profanity, use of the “f” wordSex: none – one character dreams about kissing anotherDrug/Alcohol Use: references to one main character drinking beer and getting drunkViolence: one character suffers child abuse, one character is robbed at gunpoint, one character frequently gets into fist fightsSocial Issues: child abuse, death of parent, magic, wealth versus poverty, murderSuggested Movie Grade: PG

Premise:Blue Sargent has grown up as the only non-psychic member of a household full of psychic women. When she accompanies one of her “aunts” to a yearly ritual on St. Mark’s Eve where the spirits of those who will die in the coming year show themselves, Blue finally sees her first mystical form – a boy who says his name is Gansey and who wears the uniform of the exclusive Aglionby Academy. Blue has always made it a priority to avoid the raven boys – boys who attend Aglionby – both because she believes they are rich and snobbish and because it is predicted that Blue will kiss and kill her one true love. However, she feels compelled to do something to keep Gansey from his fate.

Gansey, however, is busy on a quest he has spent the better part of his teenage years pursuing. Along with his friends Adam, Ronan, and Noah, Gansey is looking for magical ley lines that he believes will lead him to the legendary Welsh king Glendower. The myth holds that whoever awakens Glendower will be granted a wish, and Gansey is determined to find him.

When Blue enters Gansey’s life, things finally begin to happen. But not everything is good, and secrets begin to emerge that rock the group’s friendships to the core.

Potential Points of Concern: The story is based on the premise that magic, psychics and other mystical elements are real. Some scenes depict magical events that may be found intense by very sensitive readers.

Blue’s father is not known. By the end of the story, it is implied that he may have been some form of supernatural being or that something magical happened to make him disappear at the time of her birth.

Adam is abused by his father, and one scene depicts a rather brutal attack. His friend Ronan comes to his defense and gets involved in a fight with Adam’s father.

Gansey is robbed at gunpoint and believes he is about to be killed.

Ronan’s home life is unstable – his father was murdered and Ronan fights with his brother, both physically and verbally. Ronan nearly fails out of school. Ronan drinks, skips class, and is often getting into fights. Nothing is depicted graphically but rather referenced via the viewpoints of other characters.

Noah was murdered by a man in a ritual meant to awaken the energy of the magical ley lines. While the ritual is not described, his bones are discovered by Gansey and Blue.

The man who murdered Noah is trampled to death by mystical beasts. Not graphic or gory.

Reviews By Title

But I’m Too Busy to Read Everything

Yesterday at the bookstore, my middle-school-aged daughter chose a book meant to be read by a high-school-aged person. She's mature enough to handle the advanced reading level. But she's not mature enough to handle the advanced sex, language, and social issues that the book might contain. I told her I would need to preview the book before I'd allow her to read it.

And I wished for a website that would lead me in the right direction. Some place that might offer a parent's opinion on the age appropriateness of Young Adult titles.

There may be many sites out there that offer such information. In which case, one more opinion can't hurt, right? But if there aren't easily found book review sites like this one, I hope it helps other parents who are too busy to read everything but don't feel comfortable with letting their child read something without at least an idea of what might be between the front and back covers.

This site is not a review site. My opinion about the quality of the story or writing will not be shared here. Rather, this site attempts to summarize issues of concern for parents and indicate if and how the book in question handles them. Based on my own experience, I offer a suggested age of appropriateness at the end of each entry, however this is my opinion alone and has no support from the writers or publishers of the titles reviewed.

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